An update to Hamilton’s development rulebook for how more housing is delivered across the city has reached its penultimate stage.

Plan Change 12 is Hamilton City Council’s response to central government’s direction (initiated in 2022 and supported by both major parties) to enable increased housing intensification, including an initial direction of a minimum of three homes of up to three storeys on residential sites.

From the outset, Council has been adamant it would propose and advocate for a solution that was Hamilton-appropriate and delivered on considerations such as Te Ture Whaimana o Te Awa o Waikato (Vision and Strategy for the Waikato River), fairness for ratepayers, and balancing the need for housing growth against the city’s infrastructure capacity.

That approach, which will be considered by Council at its 12 December meeting, has been mostly supported by the Plan Change 12 Independent Hearings Panel. The panel has recommended minimal changes to Council’s final proposal, all but concluding a 27-month process that considered more than 350 initial submissions and two intensive rounds of hearings.

This means high-density housing intensification in Hamilton will be focused on the walkable catchment (within 800m) of the central city and along Te Rapa Road.

Medium density housing (up to three units per site to a maximum of 18m) will be targeted towards zones around Chartwell Shopping Centre and Five Cross Roads and the following corridors:

• between the city and Five Cross Roads (Boundary Road)
• between Five Cross Roads and Chartwell Shopping Centre (Peachgrove/Hukanui roads)
• surrounding Waikato Hospital.

In the general residential zone, the ‘3x3’ expectation from central government has been pared back, with Plan Change 12 introducing little change from the Operative District Plan, with two units up to 10 metres high allowed per site.

Council has also included provisions in Plan Change 12 as one of the ways it is addressing where intensification should occur based on investment in waters infrastructure.

Council’s investment in infrastructure through the 2024-34 Long-Term Plan is aligned with the high-density zones (central city and 800-metre walkable catchment) enabled by Plan Change 12 and the Hamilton Urban Growth Strategy, which also includes greenfield areas.

Areas outside of those targeted for investment may not have the waters infrastructure required for every development. Plan Change 12 requires developers to undertake an infrastructure assessment for specific types of development proposals in the medium and general zones.

Council’s Strategic Growth and District Plan Committee Chair, Councillor Sarah Thomson, is pleased to see the endorsement shown for Council’s final proposal from the independent hearing panel.

“The approach is backed by strong evidence and took into account what the submitters told us too. What we were ultimately trying to achieve is to enable density in the right places while protecting the river. We’ve done that by focusing intensification in line with our infrastructure planning, which makes sense financially for the city.”

One step remains before Plan Change 12 is fully completed. Council staff are recommending to Council that it challenges one of the panel’s recommendations to remove the requirement for developers to make financial contributions for residential amenity.

The financial contributions would be used to fund initiatives to make streets, parks and open spaces more attractive given the loss of private open space to development over time.

If Council approves the staff recommendation, final approval for the retention of financial contributions will be sought from the Minister responsible for Resource Management Reform.

Subject to Elected Member approval on 12 December, the remainder of the final outcomes for Plan Change 12 will be publicly notified and effective from 20 December 2024.

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